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Head coach Shantay Legans led the Portland Pilots men’s basketball team to the biggest win in program history on Wednesday over perennial powerhouse Gonzaga. But the 87-80 victory over the sixth-ranked Bulldogs came at a severe cost to Legans’ health.
Legans is in his fifth season as the Pilots’ head coach, and the program is 30 years removed from its last NCAA Tournament appearance, which was just the second ever.
This season, like many prior seasons, has been an uphill battle for Portland. It ended Wednesday’s game against Gonzaga with a 10-14 record, and last week, the Pilots had so many players out sick and injured that they could barely practice.
In order to ease the strain on his players, Legans hopped in to play on the scout team. Unfortunately, that proved to be a bad idea.
Here’s a new one for ya.
A week ago, there were so many players sick for University of Portland that HC Shantay Legans had to play scout team. It did not go well.
He tore his Achilles.
He told me he was going to sit versus Gonzaga tonight. That has yet to happen 😂 pic.twitter.com/Z9VDMzpZHH
— Brenna Greene (@BrennaGreene_) February 5, 2026
The 44-year-old, who played collegiately at Cal and Fresno State, tore his achilles during the practice.
“A lot of mentors say don’t get out there and play anymore once you’re 40,” Legans told the Field of 68 podcast Network before Wednesday’s game. “We were just going over some basic zone defense, offense, and I’m on offense and my Achilles popped — the worst thing that could possibly happen at the time. Former teammates joked that they stopped playing. ‘That’s not who you are anymore.’ That’s where we are [as a team]: beat up.”
After the massive upset win, Legans didn’t seem too upset with the torn Achilles. In fact, it was a sacrifice worth making.
“Going through the motions, I tore my Achilles [last week], but that’s life. I shouldn’t be out there,” Legans said. “I tore my other one seven years ago playing one-on-one with one of our players. This one was worse, though. But it’s OK. It worked out. We won the game. I’ll take an Achilles [tear] for a couple of wins.”